QL 676 



.P85 
1907 
COPY 



, UNT 



BIRD TALKS 



CHOICE 

LITERATURE 

LIBRARY 






Glass _ 

Book 

Copyright N°. 



J L 6 7i 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



HUMANE SERIES 



Aunt Mays Bird Talks 



by 

Mrs. F. M. POYNTZ. 



REVISED EDITION 
By A. CHASE 



EDUCATIONAL PUBLISHING COMPANY 



g>- 



V- 



- 



nv\ 



Copyrighted 
By EDUCATIONAL PUBLISHING COMPANY 

1904 



Revised Edition, Copyrighted 
By EDUCATIONAL PUBLISHING COMPANY 

1907 



[LIBRARY of CONGRESS 
Two CoDies Received 

JUN J HAW 

mm 



CONTENTS. 



Chapter I. 
Chapter II. 
Chapter III. 

Chapter IV. 

Chapter V. 

Chapter VI. 

Chapter VII. 

Chapter VIII. 

Chapter IX. 

. Chapter X. 



Chapter XI. 



Chapter. XII. 

Chapter XIII. 
Chapter XIV, 



Birds' Eggs 

The Robin . 
The Thrush 
The Mocking-bird 
The Oriole 

The Blackbird 

The Swallow 

The Lark 

The Woodpecker 

The Nuthatch 

The Flycatchers . 

The Phcebe 

The Vireos 

The Hummingbird . 

The Goldfinch 

The Scarlet Tana^cr 

The Wren ■ 

the Owls 

The Bluebird 



7 
10 

25 
29 

35 
Si 

65 

75 

77 

89 

105 

"3 

125 

131 
133 
135 
139 
151 
155 
159 
169 

173 
180 



To the birdies of my own nest 
this book is affectionately dedicated. 




SCREECH OWL 



(See page 169) 




AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



Chapter I. 

"Oh, I am so sorry school is over!" ex- 
claimed one of Aunt May's pupils, as they 
slowly filed out of their much-loved school- 
room. " You are not going away, Aunt May, 
and neither are we, and I just think we might 
have school all summer! " 

" Well, dear," said their kind teacher, " I 



8 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

shall have to take a little rest, but I have 
thought of a plan by which I can teach and 
you learn something every week, so that your 
vacation may not be spent entirely in play. 
On each Saturday throughout the summer I 
shall ask your mammas to give us a lunch, 
and we can go to the woods for a little picnic. 
We shall have about twelve of these days. 
Each Saturday one of you may select any 
pretty bird you see or fancy, and I will tell 
you all I know about it, in such a simple 
manner that I am sure you can all understand, 
and by the time we are ready for our next 
school term you will know something of the 
habits and appearance of our ordinary birds, 
and how to distinguish them. 

" I think all children love birds but, as a 
rule, the many books which have been written 
on this subject are filled with such hard names 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



and long words that your little brain grows 
tired trying to understand them. I am going 
to use the simplest language possible, and 
when you do not quite follow me, I want you 
to ask as many questions as you please." 

" Oh, how nice ! " cried the children. " And 
may we begin to-morrow?" asked Marguerite. 

" Yes," said Aunt May, " and as you are the 
oldest you shall make the first selection." 

" I want to hear about the ' Robin that 
wears a red bib on his breast,' Aunt May," 
answered Marguerite. 

" Very well," said Auntie, " run out and play 
while I interview your mamma on the subject 
of cookies and sandwiches for to-morrow, when 
we shall begin our bird talks." 




MARSH HAWK — ONE OF THE SEVEN EGGS JUST HATCHING Photo by Larige 



Chapter II. 



"I think," said Aunt May next morning, 
when they were all comfortably seated under 
a large poplar, "it would be wise, before I tell 
you about any particular bird, to tell you a few 
things about birds in general; how they are 
hatched, something of their form, showing you 

10 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 11 

why they are so light and yet so strong, and 
how you may know to which family a bird 
belongs. So, Marguerite, we will leave your 
Robin to hop gaily after worms and crumbs 
to-day, while you learn how he and his little 
bird cousins came into the world. 

"In the first place, you all know that the 
little birds come from eggs which the mother 
lays in her nest, and over which she patiently 
sits for a number of days, ranging from thirteen 
to twenty-one. You know our little Canary was 
on the nest only thirteen days last spring and 
hatched four babies. When you think what 
this tiresome waiting in one position means to 
a bird, which is naturally the most restless 
of creatures, you will realize how strong is 
mother love the world over, no less so in a bird 
than in a human parent. 

"This wise little mamma knows well that if 



12 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



once during all that long time an egg becomes 
chilled, she will have one birdie less in her 




BUSH SPARR( 



nest, so she rarely leaves it for a moment, and 
only rises now and then to change the position 
of the eggs. Why, you say? I told you she 
was a wise little mother; she knows that the 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 13 

eggs which lie directly under her breast are 
warmer than those near the edge of the nest, 
since they are covered only by the tail and 
wing feathers; so she moves the warmer ones 
out and the cooler ones in, and after a time 
changes them again, so that they are kept just 
as near the same temperature as possible, and 
generally hatch at the same time. 

"The eggs of different birds are very unlike 
in color. God is very good to His wee 
creatures, and has made this very difference to 
protect them. As a rule, birds which build 
their nests out of sight in dark places, or 
where they are secure, lay eggs of a light 
color — blue, green or white. Birds nesting in 
the tree-tops usually lay green eggs; somewhat 
like the color of the leaves, you see, which keeps 
them from being readily seen by robber birds 
— for I am sorry to say that even dear little 



14 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

birds do not always treat each other well — 
or seen by cats or any other destroyers of their 
little homes. 




NEST OF WOOD THRUSH 



"Then again, the eggs of a bird nesting on 
the ground will be found of a brownish color. 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 15 

as also those laid near shingles or stones ; this 
is only one of the countless instances in which 
we are called upon to reverence the wise pro- 
visions of Mother Nature. 

" After waiting about eighteen days, the 
mother will be rewarded by hearing a faint 
1 pip, pip ' within the shell, and a day or two 
later the little bird presses its beak into the 
shell, and by pushing its body against this 
opening, lifts the top. The poor little scrawny 
things at first sight seem all neck and mouth, 
for you know a bird has a very long neck, 
which seems out of all proportion to its body 
before the feathers come. This neck can 
easily be turned in any direction. Have you 
not noticed how readily your Canary puts his 
head under his wing when he feels sleepy, or 
picks at the little oil sacs under his feathers ? 

" When you grow older you must study 



16 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

about the construction of the small bones in 
the neck of the bird, and then you will under- 
stand this better, but for the present I will tell 
you that they have many little joints in their 
necks, made of many small bones joined to- 
gether and easily turned in all directions. 
Birds swallow their food whole, so that they 
have no need of teeth, nor heavy jaws with 
which to chew their food, and thus their heads 
are small ; their legs are long and slender, 
and the chief weight of the body lies in the 
breast bone and the bones to which the wings 
are attached. 

" You see, a bird is a creature of air and so 
must be light, but at the same time strong; 
its chief strength lies in the muscles that 
move the wings. Its bones, instead of being 
filled with solid substance, are hollow, as are 
also the quills upon which the feathers grow. 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



17 



Thus, not only its lungs, but its whole body, 
is filled with air, and the bird is really a kind 




of balloon, kept aloft by the simple exertion 
of fanning with its wings. The tail of a 



18 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

bird has been compared to the rudder of a 
ship, which you know is useful in guiding a 
vessel through the water; just so our little air 
ship, the bird, is assisted by its tail. 

" I know you have often wondered how your 
little bird could stand for hours on his perch 
and yet not seem tired ; it would tire you 
dreadfully, but in this instance, again, the bird 
has a great advantage over us. In fact, he 
does not have to exert himself in the least to 
stand there, for the weight of his body in this 
position makes the claws close of their own 
accord ; they do not try to close, they simply 
cannot help it. It is just as if there were a 
string through the legs, and when the thighs 
bend up towards the body, this pulls the 
string — or ligament, as it is called — and 
tightens the grasp of the claws on the perch ; 
when the bird stands up the tension is loos- 




AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 19 

ened. So you see the bird may sleep securely, 
knowing he is in no danger of tumbling from 
his bed, as John sometimes does, and your 

sympathy for the 
poor birdie has 
been wasted. 

"You may have 
wondered why a 
chicken is soft and 
downy as soon as it leaves its shell, while 
a bird is almost naked and seems a mass 
of bones. I will tell you why this is. Mother 
Nature again knows her business well. She 
knows that as soon as a chicken is hatched it 
must run around after its mother and pick 
up its food, so the chicken most needs its 
dress of downy feathers to wear on the 
very first day of its arrival. Not so the 
bird ! Above everything, this creature — whose 



20 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

life is to be spent floating through the air 
instead of grubbing in the earth — needs 
strength of wing, neck and bill ; the little bird 
can wait for his feathers, for his mother keeps 
him cuddled up warm and snug in the ne.st, 
while waiting for them to grow ; but the most 
important thing is to strengthen the parts 
which will soonest help him to fly. The father 
and mother bird are willing and glad to bring 
his food to the nest, so that he can well afford 
to wait for his handsome coat of feathers. 

"You know the bird's wing must have all 
the strength possible, not only for flying, but 
because this same useful wing takes the place 
of a hand to him. I think his neck, too, is 
another kind of hand, so he is well supplied. 
When we take a piece of bread to eat we 
grasp it with the hand and carry it to the 
mouth by means of the hand and arm ; the 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 21 

bird simply stretches its long neck, seizes the 
food in its beak and swallows it, before you 
can say Jack Robinson. 

" The male bird is nearly always more 
brilliant and beautiful in coloring than the 
female ; for the sake of safety this is again a 
work of wisdom, for, as the mother bird spends 
so much time near the nest, it attracts less 
attention for her to wear a dark and sober 
hued dress. In this way she is passed un- 
noticed, while her bright feathered mate 
receives much admiration. She feels no 
jealousy, for she is a devoted little mother, 
and knows that when she is unnoticed her 
babies — always nestling under her wing — 
are safe. 

" The wisdom of this color scheme is very 
noticeable in the cases of the quail, partridge 
and snipe, which nest on the ground and are 



22 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

much sought by hunters ; they are so like the 
color of earth that one has to be very near 
them to distinguish the bird from the leaves 
and brown earth. 

" Now, I am afraid my little birdies are 
tired, so we will spend the rest of our holiday 
in play, for we have earned a game or two by 
paying such good attention to our first bird 
lesson. " 

So, with a merry game of hide and seek 
among the lovely forest trees, Aunt May's 
first Saturday in the woods ended. 



^ wy W v 




ROBIN 




Chapter III. 



On the next Saturday we find our little 
party clustered around Aunt May under their 
favorite tree, with the never-failing lunch- 
basket near at hand, eagerly awaiting her 
second talk about their feathered friends. 

When they were all comfortably settled and 
each little face upturned to hers their teacher 
began : 

" In our first lesson on birds we learned, I 
hope, something about how they come into 
existence, the structure of their bodies, and 
gained a little general information on the sub- 
ject. Our next step in this study is to find 
out to what tribe or family they belong ; for 



25 



26 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 




AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 27 

birds have different families, names, habits 
and colors, just as do the races of men. You 
know in your Geography you have read of 
white, red, brown, black, and yellow men, 
whose manner and modes of living are very 
different; this is true also of birds. Those who 
have made a study of birds have divided the 
whole bird creation into six different orders. 
I shall try to give you a simple explanation 
of this arrangement, so that when you grow 
older and can pursue your studies alone, you 
will have a chart to guide you in your work. 
" First, then, the six orders of birds are : 
I. Birds of Prey. 
II. Perching Birds. 

III. Climbing Birds. 

IV. Gallinaceous Birds. 
V. Wading Birds. 

VI. Swimming Birds. 



28 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

"As we propose to study only our home 
birds, those which live and build their nests 
in the states, we will commence with the 
Perching Birds, those which perch or roost 
in trees. 

"Among the Perching Birds are some which 
belong to the sub-order of singing-birds, such 
as the Thrushes, Mocking-bird, Oriole and 
Robin; and since these are the most interest- 
ing as well as the most familiar specimens of 
bird life to us, we will begin with the Thrush 
family, which is large and includes many birds 
that do not bear the name ; and this brings 
me to Marguerite's selection for to-day. Pay 
strict attention while I introduce our first 
feathered friend, the Robin. 




THE ROBIN. 



" The proper name for our American Robin 
is the ' Migratory Thrush/ This means that 
he is a restless little member of the Thrush 
family, and is constantly moving from one 
place to another. Most birds spend their 
summers in the more northern and their win- 
ters in the southern states ; but the robin loves 
a change at any time, and if the winter is 
mild, will suddenly reappear after he has 



29 



30 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

chirped farewell for the season. He is the 
earliest spring visitor we have, and for this 
reason we should pay our respects to him first. 
Often he braves the wintry storm to cheer us 
with the hope of returning summer, while his 
little bird cousins still linger in the sunny 
south. 

Our Robin is not the same as the English 
Robin Redbreast; he is larger and the ' red bib 
on his breast is of a darker shade. He has 
many of the marks of the Thrush family, bui 
we call him the Robin and shall probably 
always do so. You have all, no doubt, heard 
the story of the babes lost in the wood, and 
how the kind little robins scattered leaves over 
them to protect them from cold. It is said 
that the idea was suggested to the writer of 
that story by seeing the English Robins strew 
dead leaves over their nests ( which they make 



AUNT MAY'S BTRD TALKS. 31 

on the ground) to hide and keep warm their 

eggs. 

" Our Robin is a very sweet, cheery, friendly 
little bird, and I am sure you little children 
love his melodious whistle, although he cannot 
boast such a varied song as other members 
of the Thrush family. The Robin's coat is a 
dark grayish color, his vest red and the black 
and white streaks on his throat may be called 
his collar and necktie ; so you see our little 
gentleman dresses in good taste. He does 
not mind the cold, as I told you, but often 
comes before winter is gone, hopping cheer- 
fully about, picking up crumbs or any article 
of food he can find. 

" Look quickly! There is one under the 
pear tree ! Now, what do you suppose he is 
doing ? See how slowly he hops along with 
his head bent close to the ground. I will tell 



32 AUNT MAYS BIRD TALKS. 

you what Mr. Robin is about. His sense of 
hearing is very acute. He hears a worm 
boring in the ground, and when he has actu- 
ally located it he digs into the ground with 
his sharp yellow beak, seizes and instantly 
swallows the worm, or else flies quickly off, 
to fill the hungry 
mouths of his never- 
satisfied babies ; for 
it is said by those 
who have studied 
their habits, that a young Robin can eat as 
many as sixty-eight worms a day, which in 
comparison with what a man eats — allowing 
for the difference in their sizes — would make 
the bird eat in one day about thirty times as 
much as a man. Think how hard the father 
and mother bird must work to feed four or 
five greedy young birds and themselves as 




AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 33 

well. You know something of the amount 
birds eat, for you remember the quantity of 
bread and egg we used to give our young 
Canaries last spring. 

" Robins are blamed, like a good many 
other birds, for stealing fruit, but they make 
up for what they take by ridding gardens of 
worms and insects, of which they are very 
fond, and which do far more damage to fruit, 
vegetables and grain than do the birds. The 
Robins, like the Blackbirds, are very fond of 
roosting together in large numbers, and at one 
of their family gatherings make quite as much 
noise by their lively chatter. But if we hear 
one in the cold dark days of winter or early 
spring, we enjoy his twitter, which is cheerful 
and happy, and also love the little fleck of gay 
color which he shows us as he flits about 
through the leafless trees. 



34 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



There is nothing very remarkable about the 
Robin but, take him altogether, he is a very 
pretty, cheerful little fellow, and we love him 
most because he is the ' Harbinger of Spring/ ' 





Chapter IV. 



"Well," said Aunt May, on the next 
Saturday, " what bird has Lillian chosen for 
to-day ? " 

The children all seemed to know, for 
they all began to sing one of their favorite 



songs : 



" There's a merry brown thrush sitting up in 
a tree ; 
He's singing to me ! He's singing to me ; 
And what does he say, little girl, little boy ? 
Oh, the world's running over with joy, 
Don't you hear? Don't you see? 
Hush! Look! In my tree 
I'm as happy as happy can be." 



35 




BROWN THRUSH 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 37 

'• I am sure," said Aunt May, as the happy 
young voices died away, " I do not feel like 
talking about any bird in the world but our 
1 Merry Brown Thrush/ You have all noticed 
the little Thrush which has a nest not far 
from the plum tree by our door. Now each 
one tell me something you remember about it/' 

" It's my favorite color, brown," said Daisy. 

" Right," said Aunt May. 

" It has a speckled brown and white breast," 
said Lillian. 

" Next, Marguerite." 

" It has such a sweet note, I love to hear it 
better than the other birds." 

11 Well, Harry, what have you to say about 
the Thrush ? " 

11 It catches snails, and I have never seen 
other birds do that." 

" What do you remember about the Thrush, 



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HERMIT THRUSH 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 39 

John?" asked Aunt May of the youngest 
scholar. 

" It has a tail," shouted John, with evident 
pride, while the other children laughed heartily. 

" And now," said their teacher, " since you 
have told me what you know, I shall tell you 
all that I have been reading lately about the 
Thrush. 

11 Early in the spring flocks of these birds 
may be seen in our woods, happy, busy and 
chattering as they work, for they have been 
spending the winter in the far south and have 
come home to have a ' spring cleaning.' 
There are several kinds of Thrushes and all 
remarkable for their lovely song. I believe 
one little friend of which we w r ere just now 
speaking is a Wood Thrush, for he wears a 
little patch of red on his head, w 7 hile the 
Hermit Thrush has red on his tail. However, 



40 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



any Thrush sings sweetly enough to charm 
the ear of any but the most indifferent listener. 
Sweet, clear, and bell-like, their soft notes rise 
above every other sound, when at evening they 




sing their hymn of praise and thanksgiving 
to the Creator of birds as well as of men. 
' The song of the Thrush is a vesper hymn 
as the Lark's is the morning carol/ the former 
dreamy and flute-like, the latter merry and gay. 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 41 

" As a singer the Thrush ranks next to the 
nightingale of Europe and with us he contends 
for the palm with our own mocking-bird. But 
our little brown friend is not all softness and 
sweetness; he is a brave little bird, kind and 
loving at home, but a terrible enemy. Birds 
have their troubles and dangers, and must 
always guard their nests well ; woe to the bird 
who attacks the Thrush's nest ! He is very 
fierce and with his sharp claws and beak can 
drive off or wound any other bird, and has 
been known to peck and scratch cats or other 
animals until they were glad to run away and 
leave the little family in peace." 

" Is he what you call a Cat-bird, Aunt 
May?" 

" No, dear," said Aunt May, with a smile. 
" A cat-bird is a kind of cousin to the 
Thrushes, and is a very lively, pert little fellow; 



42 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

he destroys a great many garden pests and is 
very useful in that way. He is a quiet, 
modest looking bird with no bright feathers, 
and the only peculiarity about him is that he 
often gives a note very much like the mew of 
a cat ; from this he gets his name. 

But to return to the Thrushes proper. 
There is another variety called the Missel 
Thrush, which is common in England ; this 
name is given because of the bird's fondness 
for the mistletoe berries. The little fellow, by 
his bravery, has won the nickname of " Master 
of the Coppice/' and I will let you children 
tell me next time just what that means. The 
Thrush is like children in one respect — he is - 
very fond of berries ; if a garden is near his 
nest he has a feast of good things, for not 
only can he dine off the juicy fruit, but he 
pays his board bill by killing all the snails 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 43 

in sight. This he does in a very funny 
way ; he flies down and seizes the snail in his 
beak, and dashes it against a stone, thus 
breaking the shell and leaving the snail for 
him to eat. As snails cut the tender green 
leaves, I think any gardener can afford to give 
our little friend a few berries in payment for 
this service. 

" The Thrush often returns to his old nest of 
the year before, for children love their homes, 
and why not birds ? A great many of them 
bring the same little mate home with them. 
They generally build their nest high up in 
a branch of a tall tree ; for they generally 
love to be near the blue sky and feel safer 
there, although some Thrushes nest on the 
ground. 

The Thrush's nest is made of sticks and 
grass and shaped like a cup. Do you know 



44 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

how they shape their nests and make them 
so smooth inside? The male bird helps 
build the nest and together they collect 
grasses, bits of moss, sticks and feathers 
dropped by other birds. The female — the 
little mother, you know — lets her mate help 
collect material and build the outside, but she 
shapes the inside herself; she is so afraid it 
will not be soft enough for the delicate little 
eggs and tender little birds which come from 
the eggs. How do you suppose she does 
this ? By getting inside the nest and pressing 
her own body hundreds and hundreds of times 
against it on all sides, turning again and again 
until the interior is pressed together smooth 
and warm for the bird babies. What a loving, 
patient little mother! 

11 Soon the nest is filled with beautiful blue 
eggs spotted with brown. Now you will 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



45 



think the mother patient indeed; she sits for 
days and weeks on these little eggs to keep 
them warm, never tired^ never complaining. 
I wonder if my little children could keep so 
still ! I think not, and a bird is by nature 
even more restless than a child. Does not 
God put a divine patience into the breast of 
that little feathered mother? 

" Her mate certainly does his duty; he 
brings her all the nicest, juiciest worms. 

When the 
mother bird 
has eaten 
her supper, 
Mr. Thrush 
perches high 
above the 
nest and sings to her so sweetly that she for- 
gets how tired she is, and thinks only of the 




46 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



happy day when the eggs will ' pip, pip/ and 
her babies cry faintly for food. 

" After the birds come from the shell the 
father brings little worms to the mother, which 
she first chews for the babies and then gives 
to them, a bit at a time, so that they will not 

choke. In one of 
your books is the 
story of a boy who 
found a young bird 
and took it home to 
raise ; he knew that 
birds ate worms, so 
he got the largest he 
could find, but for- 
got to ' chew it '■ — 
so the story says — before giving it to the 
bird, so the poor little thing choked to death. 
" Our wise little mother Thrush makes no 




AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 47 

such mistake, and her birdies soon grow 
strong and learn to spread their wings and fly. 
Then they begin to take lessons in singing 
from their papa. At first it is very funny, for 
their only note is a hoarse squeak, but they 
listen and imitate their father's sweet notes, 
and by and by there is a nest full of tiny 
warblers, whose lovely song thrills the heart 
with peace and gratitude to God whose 
wonderful hand created them. 

" I will finish our talk to-day with a little 
poem by one who watched a nest of Thrushes: 

" ' Within a thick and spreading hawthorn 
bush, 
That overhung a mole hill large and 
round, 
I heard from morn to morn a merry Thrush 
Sing hymns to sunrise, while I drank the 
sound 



48 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

With joy, and often an intruding guest, 

I watched her secret toils from day to day: 
How true she warped the moss to form her 
nest, 
And modeled it within with sward and 
clay; 
And by and by, like heath-bell gilt with dew, 
There lay her shining eggs as bright as 
flowers, 
Ink spotted over shells of green and blue, 
And there I witnessed in the summer 
hours 
A brood of nature's minstrels chirp and fly, 
Glad as the sunshine and the laughing sky/ ' 





MOCKING BIRD 




Chapter V. 



THE MOCKING-BIRD. 



" You are all fond of music," said Aunt 
May, on their next lesson day ; " I have 
brought you into the woods this lovely June 
morning to listen to the sweet sounds of 
Nature's orchestra. Now, you know an 
orchestra is composed of many musicians all 
striving to make their different instruments 



51 



52 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

blend one with another and so produce a 
harmony of sounds. 

" We shall liken the singing of these birds, 
as I said, to Nature's orchestra, and I will 
introduce you to a bird which bears to the 
other singers the relation of a singer to an 
accompanying orchestra ; in other words, the 
Mocking-bird ranks first as a singer, so far 
superior to all the other birds is this little 
songster in the beauty and variety of his tones 
and, above all, in his power to imitate other 
birds. He has, indeed, an entire orchestra in 
his tiny throat. 

" I speak of his singing, for in all the 
bird families the gentlemen wear the gay 
feathers and win admiration by their songs, 
while the little lady birds wear plain clothes 
and have very little to say for themselves, 
but stay at home and attend to their affairs. 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS 53 

as becomes the wives of such important 
husbands. 

" The Mocking-bird loves a warm climate 
and even in summer rarely comes as far north 
as Ohio, but those who have known him in 
Tennessee, or in Florida, are not willing to 
give even to the far-famed Nightingale of 
Europe the crown of Song King, but claim it 
for our own loved * songster of the grove/ 

" Perched high on a limb, although sur- 
rounded by all the warblers of the forest, he 
sings as if alone. His notes combine all that 
is sweet in the songs of other birds with most 
beautiful notes of his own, far lovelier than 
their finest efforts. 

" The Mocking-bird is also of the numerous 
Thrush family. His name (which hardly does 
justice to his song) indicates the peculiar habit 
he has of ' mocking ' or imitating, and for this 



54 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

reason is quite appropriate. He often conceals 
his lovely voice by indulging his fondness for 
'mocking' others. He is just like some boys, 
so full of fun and mischief that his greatest 
pleasure is to tease. He dearly loves to make 
other birds think their mates are calling them, 
and his note of glee when he sees their disap- 
pointment at finding they are deceived, might 
almost be termed a chuckle. 

\" I do not think I can do better 
than tell you what Bailey says of 
this bird : 
"'The mellow whistle of the 
red-bird is heard overhead together 
with the call of the Jay, the mewing of 
the Cat-bird, the loud clear melody of the 
Wood-robin, the shrill cry of the Woodpecker, 
and many other voices equally attractive. 
As we advance into the thicket the confusion 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 55 

of sounds increases ; and last, though it is 
broad day, we are surprised to hear the cry 
of the Whip-poor-will. Suddenly there darts 
up from a bush a fine Mocking-bird, and 
sitting on a bough continues his varied 
melody. The secret is explained ; the little 
mimic has been the sole cause of our sur- 
prise, and there he sits fluting his tail and 
calling out ' Bob White ! ', and before poor Bob 
White has time to scamper to his covey the 
screams of the Pigeon-hawk are heard loud 
and clear, then the clear ringing melody of the 
Brown Thrush set off with the gentler tones 
of the Robin and Bluebird. We stand and 
listen with delight to this grand concert of 
' Nature's great musician.' 

" I was reading to-day a very amusing 
account of a pet' Mocking-bird named Bob, 
who kept the family of its owner in a constant 



56 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

state of excitement. First it would whistle as 
the master was in the habit of doing for his 
dog. Fido would jump, wag his tail and run 
joyfully to meet his master (as he supposed) 
hoping for a treat of some kind, either a choice 
bit of meat or to be taken for a walk ; the 
'little mischief' would chirp in the most dole- 
ful manner, imitating a hurt chicken and all 
the mother hens would rush about, wildly 
excited, to see if one of the baby chicks had 
been hurt. Then Bob would mew like a cat 
and Baby would run for 
her favorite playmate, while 
Master Bob sat on his 
perch with head on one side 
and a very knowing twinkle 
in his eye, as if he thought, ' Ha, ha! I fooled 
you that time.' 

" At night, however, the Mocking-bird lays 




AUNT MAYS BIRD TALKS. 57 

aside his teasing, joking mood, and becomes 
more serious. He may tease and play while 
day lasts, but when the moon rises over the 
hill-tops, and all is peaceful and quiet, his 
heart seems touched by the beauty of Nature, 
and he pours forth a flood of liquid melody, 
which none of his rivals can hope to approach 
in sweetness ; it has often been observed in the 
forest, that when the Mocking-bird sings, the 
other birds, one after another, cease their 
efforts, and by one consent accord him the 
sincerest praise, that of respectful silence. 

" The Mocking-bird wears a very modest 
dress of ashen gray with trimmings of black 
and white, and though his figure is elegant, 
many little people would very likely pass by 
him without a second glance, were they to find 
him beside that haughty and stylish gentle- 
man, the Blue-jay, or the brilliant Cardinal ; 





J 


37 







BLUE JAY 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 59 

but you must remember that ' fine feathers do 

not always make fine birds.' I do not mean 

this for the Red-bird, which I love and admire 

extremely, but I cannot speak a good word for 

the Jay, despite the fact that he wears a 

^^ handsome blue coat with 

m black and white trimmings, 

m m and an exceptionally fine 

W set of whiskers ; for he robs 

^^. the other birds' nests, eats 

H ^pV their eggs and young, and 

^dtfT misbehaves generally. 

m I " So do not scorn the 

™ " Mocking-bird on account of 

his plain appearance, for when you have 
heard his song and learned his gay and 
happy disposition, you will love him best of 
all. Added to these merits he is a model 
husband and father, protecting his family with 



60 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



his life if necessary. Audubon, our greatest 
naturalist, tells the story of a Mocking-bird's 
battle with a snake which had attacked its 
nest. The snake had wrapped its deadly coils 
close around the mother bird, and her mate, 




wild with grief, attacked the snake again and 
again, beating it with its wings and pecking 
its eyes. At a call from the male bird, another 
mocker and still a third flew to his assistance, 
and they finally killed the snake and released 
the mother bird; afterward they held a grand 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 61 

jubilee in which all the birds of the forest 
joined. So you see how brave our little friend 
can be in the face of great danger. 

" These birds often build near the house and 
place their nests in cedars, apple trees or holly 
bushes ; they are inclined to be more friendly 
and social than their cousins, the Thrush 
family. This makes them in constant danger 
from another enemy, the cat. You remember 
how your kitty caught and ate a little Sparrow 
not long ago, so you can understand why the 
Mocking-bird, too, dreads the cat. However, 
the courage with which they use their sharp 
claws and beaks soon drives a cat away, for 
cats, you know, are not very brave. 

" The eggs of this bird are a beautiful blue 
with brown spots, something like those of the 
Thrush. The nest of the Mocking-bird has an 
outer framework of briars or thorns, and in 



62 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



this is placed the real nest which is woven of 
fine roots ; they look like little baskets and 
these birds are called ' basket makers/ 

" Now, I have a surprise for you. I was 
told this morning that one of our neighbors 
had caught a Mocking-bird, and I am going to 
finish this talk by taking all of you to see this 
wonderful little song bird and so give you an 
object lesson you will not soon forget." 

" Oh, how lovely that will be ! Thank you, 
thank you, Aunt May!" exclaimed the children, 
as they rushed eagerly down the hill to see a 
" really, truly Mocking-bird." 





BALTIMORE ORIOLE 




Chapter VI. 
THE ORIOLE. 

"Aunt May/' said Harry, " I have just found 
such a lovely bird's wing; do tell us to what 
poor birdie it belonged and all about it to-day." 

" Poor little thing ! " said Aunt May. " This 
wing once helped a lovely Oriole to fly ' on 
pinions light ' through the air, but in an evil 
moment he fell a prey to some wicked cat or 
hawk, and all that is now left of him is the 
little bunch of yellow and black feathers you 
hold. There are said to be six varieties of 

65 



66 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS 

Orioles, but we are familiar with only two, the 
Baltimore and the Orchard Oriole. 

" The former receives its name because of 
its feathers of bright 
orange and black, which 
were the colors of Lord 
Baltimore, the first 
owner of Maryland, and 
for whom the city of 
Baltimore was named. 
I have read that Lord 
Baltimore, when he first 
came to this country to 
form a colony, met with many discouragements; 
finally he went to the colonies of Virginia 
and Maryland, where he was much pleased, 
and seeing large flocks of these brilliant 
birds, took them as an omen of success, 
gave them his name and adopted their colors. 




AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 67 

" There is no bird that can boast a more 
brilliant coloring; the rich orange and jetty 
black form a most striking contrast. The nest 




ORIOLE'S NEST 



of the Oriole is very different from those of 
other birds. It is a long, narrow bag or pouch 



68 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



fastened to the end of a bough and made of 
threads, yarn or fibers from trees or plants 
woven together. Audubon writes that the 
Oriole's nest in the south is made of Spanish 
moss loosely woven, so that the air may pass 

through, and hung on 
the north-east side of 
the tree where it can 
be always cool. The 
nests of the same bird 
in the north are made 
of flax, hemp, wool or 
any warm threads, and 
tightly woven to make them warm for the 
eggs and to protect the young birds from the 
cold ; they are hung on the side of the tree 
most exposed to the sun. Do you not think 
the instinct given by God to these little 
creatures, that they may care for and rear their 





AUNT MAY'S BTRD TALKS. 69 

young in safety, is almost equal to human 
intelligence? You see, the parent birds in the 

south make 
their nests like 
a nice cool 
hammock for 
orchard oriole the babies to 

sleep in, for they know that the climate is 
warm, but in the north they make it close and 
cosy as a baby's crib. The night wind is 
their nurse, so the babies, whether' in the 
sunny south or the colder north, are always 
rocked gently to sleep. 

" Audubon, in describing the nest making 
in the south, says that the male bird first 
brings a long strip of gray moss, one end of 
which he fastens tightly with bill and claw to 
the branch which has been selected for the 
nest, and the other to a twig several inches 



*■>**? j, 





ORCHARD ORIOLE 




oriole's claws 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 71 

distant, leaving the thread curving in the air 
like a fairy's wing; after several have been 
thus put in place, the female brings another 

strip and commences 
weaving in an opposite 
direction — just as you 
weave paper mats — 
making the strands cross and recross. So 
they weave in and out, from bottom to top, 
until their light, airy, but substantial home is 
finished; they are very industrious, and will 
steal and carry off any bits of thread, cloth 
or hair they may find to use for their nests, 

'« Wilson — another great writer and lover 
of D i r( Js — says he once showed an Oriole's 
nest to an old lady, and she asked him, half in 
earnest, if he did not think it possible to teach 
those birds to darn stockings. 

«The note of the Baltimore Oriole is not 



72 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

always sweet, but often so sharp as to be like 
a fife or whistle. This has given him the 
name of ' Golden Gabble/ He is also some- 
times called ' Fire Robin/ because his feathers 
look almost like flame darting in and out of 
the trees. Still another name is ' Hang Nest/ 
It is said that these birds do not build their 




nests so carefully in the cities as in the 
country ; this is because they do not fear man 
as they do the wild animals and birds of the 
forest. 

"The Orchard Oriole is not so gay of 
plumage as his cousin, but there are those who 
admire him more, both in voice and manner. 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



73 



His feathers are of a dull, reddish brown, but 
his song is sweeter and we imagine his dispo- 
sition is more gentle than that of the frisky 
Baltimore. The two varieties do not associate 
in the summer, but frequently migrate to- 
gether. The Orioles are very fond of insects 
and are a great help to the gardener in 
destroying these pests which infest fruit trees 
and gardens. " 




RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD 




Chapter VII. 

The next Friday afternoon was very hot and 
sultry and as evening drew on there was a 
general tendency among Aunt May's scholars 
to want what they couldn't get and not want 
to do what they could. 

" This is such a lonesome day," yawned 
Daisy, who had the worst case of " I wants " 
and " I don't know what to do " in the whole 
party. 

" Aunt May, can not you suggest some- 
thing?" asked Mamma, who had exhausted all 
her resources. 



76 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS 

" How would you like to have our ' Bird 
Talk' this evening instead of to-morrow ?" 

" Oh, do ! " Goody, goody ! " shouted the 
children. 

" I have a scheme," said Aunt May. "Take 
off your shoes and stockings and come with 
me to the creek. You shall sit on the bank 
and dip your hot, tired little feet into the cool 
water while we listen to the evening gossip of 
the Blackbirds roosting in the trees overhead, 
and I will tell you something about them." 

The children needed no second bidding, but 
ran merrily down the hill telling Mamma not 
to expect them until bed-time. 

The trees were black with restless, cawing, 
fluttering birds, calling back and forth to their 
neighbors as though unwilling to give up their 
chat even for a good night's sleep. Sitting on 
the green grass, cautiously dipping little toes 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



77 



into the stream or throwing pebbles over its 
bright surface, the children listened to what 




Aunt May had to say about 

THE BLACKBIRD. 
" I was awakened early this morning by the 
eternal chatter, chatter of the Blackbirds, and 



78 AUNT MAYS BIRD TALKS. 

on looking out of my window beheld a goodly 
company of them assembled, looking, I think, 
for the crumbs Marguerite so often throws 
them. Spick and span, every feather of their 
well-oiled coats glistening in the sunshine, I 
thought they looked even more prosperous 
than last year. I wonder where they went 
during the cold months. Not far, I'll warrant, 
for late in November they held their last talk 
in the trees over the creek here, where they 
used to meet for a late afternoon and an 
early morning gossip. On this last day one 
important gentleman took upon himself the 
command of the company, and so away they 
flew to seek shelter in a warmer clime, until 
the cold winter had passed ; and now they are 
cheerily singing, ' Home again ! ' 

"How happy they are and how friendly! 
They hop right under the window and even on 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 79 

the porch, knowing we are their friends and 
would not harm a single feather. 

" The English Blackbird belongs to the 
Thrush family and sings a very sw r eet little 
song. Our American Blackbird is more of 
the Crow order and is called the Purple 
Crackle. There are several different kinds 
and they all belong to the Starling family. 
The Rusty Grackle is dirty black, without the 
pretty purple collar you so much admire, and 
then there is the Red Wing, whose song in the 
spring-time is very sweet. 

"_' Why chidest thou the tardy spring, 
The hardy bunting does not chide ; 
The blackbirds make the maples ring 
With social cheer and jubilee, 
The red wing flutes his O-ke-lee.' 
So when you hear a note in spring time which 
sounds like this, * O-ke-lee,' you may know the 



80 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

blackbirds are here. As I told you, the sing- 
ing Blackbird is related to the Thrushes and 
also to the Mocking-bird ; all these belong to 
the tribe of perching birds. 

" The Blackbirds have many good and en- 
dearing qualities. You may know some 
farmers who do not agree with me, for a flock 
of Blackbirds often work havoc with a corn 
crop, but if they pull up the young sprouts, 
they also kill the cut worms which injure 
the corn more than the birds could possibly 
do. 

" Blackbirds have very good appetites and 
the saying, ' All is grist that goes to the mill,' 
is certainly true of them ; if they cannot find 
wheat or corn to suit them, they turn readily 
to berries or fruit, and when these fail they 
devour insects, worms or bugs ; in winter they 
eat holly berries or any kind of seed they may 



AUNT MAYS BIRD TALKS. 81 

be able to find. They treat a snail just as 
the Thrush does, dashing it against a stone 
until the shell is broken. 

" As I was going to tell you, I admire the 
Blackbird for one thing, because his family 

affection is so strong. 
Large flocks nest in 
the same trees and 
live in great harmony 
even when joined by 
other varieties of their family; thus the 
Grackle, the Rusty and the Red-wing Black- 
birds will often nest in one locality. They 
are very careful of their young, feeding 
them dozens of times a day and taking great 
pains to teach them to fly when they are old 
enough. 

Our purple Grackle is said to be a robber 
bird, but this we hate to believe. He has 





82 AUNT MAY'S BLKD TALKS. 

a very funny, teetering walk ; he swings from 
side to side, spreading his tail and loot 
ing very comical, but he is one of our first 

spring birds, and 
very glad we are to 
see him. 

"The Blackbird's 
nest is often made 
of twigs and moss, plastered inside with mud 
and lined with grass. The female usually 
lays four or five eggs, blue or blue with brown 
spots. 

" I read not long ago a story which shows 
the strong affection of the Blackbird for its 
young. A boy found a nest of young Black- 
birds in a tree and carried it home; he was 
followed all the way home — three miles — - by 
the mother bird, chirping and fluttering her 
wings in great distress. She hovered near the 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 83 

house just as anxious as your mother would 
be if some strange monster had carried you 
off; the boy noticed this and put the young 
birds in a cage and hung it outside the house. 
Every day the father and mother birds came 
and fed their babies until they were grown. 
Although their home and all their flock of 
bird friends were three miles away, these de- 
voted parents remained with their children, 
leaving friends, home and everything for them. 
One day, when the young ones were quite 
grown, a man who was a great lover of birds 
and could not bear to see wild birds confined, 
came to the boy's home. He heard the story 
of the Blackbirds and was much interested, 
watching to see if the old birds would really 
come. 

Soon they flew down with berries and 
seed, chirping lovingly to their little ones, as 




o 
u 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 85 

though trying to help them bear their hard 

life, for it is a great trial for such a restless 

creature to be shut up in a small cage. The 

man asked the boy what he would take for the 

two young birds; the boy told him, and this 

good man bought them at once. Then, to the 

boys surprise, he opened the door of the cage; 

out flew the timid young birds, but fell to the 

ground, for they had not learned to fly. The 

parents, almost wild with joy, flew to help 

them, and soon took them a safe distance from 

the house, all the time chirp- 

m ing and twittering in excite- 

J I ment and happiness. In a few 

M Wr minutes the male bird flew to 

M ^X^t the top of a tree and poured 

forth a hymn of thanksgiving. 

The man turned to his little friend and made 

him promise never to rob a bird's nest again, 



86 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

telling him that they, too, are God's creatures 
and he wants them to be happy and free to 
enjoy their little lives. 

"You can readily tell a Blackbird from a 
Crow, as a Crow is twice as large as a Black- 
bird and is jet black all over. 

"The Crow stays with us all the year round, 
and his loud caw, caw, caw, can be heard at all 
seasons. 

V 1 The Crow, like the Blackbird, is also a social 
bird. Large flocks of them may often be seen 
roosting together in autumn and winter. 

" In the spring time the farmers try all sorts 
of plans to keep them away from their planted 
fields, by means of scarecrows and other de- 
vices, as the Crow is very fond of corn, and 
will pull up the young corn plants as fast as 
they make their appearance above the ground, 
and eat the kernel. 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS, 87 

11 In wintertime, however, he has a hard time 
of it. If he lives near the seashore he goes to 
the beach every morning for fish, mussels or 
refuse which the sea may cast up. 

11 He has a very keen eye, and will see food 
from far off, and come circling round and 
round and round and drop down, down, down, 
nearer, nearer, till he almost dips his beak 
into the food. Then with a loud caw, caw, 
you will hear him call all his brothers and 
sisters to share the feast with him." 




BANK SWALLOW 



Chapter VIII. 

"When the swallows homeward fly," sang 
Aunt May at their next meeting. " Look 
overhead and you will see members of what 
John calls the 'flying expresses' and about 
which he asked me to tell you to-day. 

"The swallow is called the ' Bird of return' 
and sometimes the ' Bird of flight/ Now why 
do you think she has been given these names? 
She is called the ' Bird of flight ' because she 
can fly faster than any bird except the eagle ; 
her flight is said to be at the rate of a mile a 
minute. It seems to us that the steam cars 
move very rapidly when they go fifty or sixty 

39 



90 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

miles an hour, but think of a little bird flying 
as fast as the train! You say, ' How can she 
fly so fast?' She is built for speed just as 
completely as a locomotive is ; she is a trim, 
well-shaped bird and everything about her is 
arranged for and adapted to flight. Her 
wings are sloped like a scythe and cut through 
the air, bearing her along with little effort ; her 
neck is very short, her back large and her tail 
forked. 

"The name Swallow comes from a Greek 
word which means ' without feet ', and not as 
some have claimed, from their habit of swal- 
lowing food while on the wing. But, you say, 
surely the swallow has feet ! Yes, but very 
poor, clumsy little feet they are. She rests 
flying and when she does stop she is most 
uncomfortable, and tries to rest upon her 
breast, for it is very hard for her to stand. 




AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 91 

But if our little Swallow has poor feet she 
makes up for the loss, by having stronger and 
longer wings than other birds. She floats 
along snatching 
insects from the 
air, eating as she 
flies. Is she hot 
and dusty? She 
dives into the 

stream and skims over the surface of the 
water, bathing as she flies. Happy only 
when on the wing, she flies round and round 
in circles, and this is why she is called the 
1 Bird of return ' ; she always comes back to 
her starting-point. When attacked by a larger 
bird she often drives him away by this strange 
habit; she will circle around his head until he 
is quite dizzy with his effort to watch her. 
After flying around for a few minutes she will 



92 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

suddenly dart off, returning as quickly, and 
when she has thus quite confused her enemy 
she will pounce upon him and drive him 
away. 

" Swallows are very friendly birds and love 
to build their nests close to houses, generally 
fastening them to the eaves; they are called 
mason birds, because their nests are little cups 
of mud mixed with sticks and feathers. You 
have seen a brick mason with his trowel mix- 
ing mortar ? Well, this little mason is quite 
as skilful. It is very interesting to watch this 
nest-building ; the swallow flies to the waters 
edge and returns with a beakful of moist clay 
which he plasters upon the eaves of a house. 
This he does again and again, using claw and 
beak to shape the nest to suit his mind ; these 
birds build from the top down, frequently 
putting in bits of straw to hold their work 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



93 



together, just as the mason does with his 
mortar. 

"When the houses of these patient little 
toilers are finished, they are much more durable 
than those of other birds, which in the tree- 

\ 




tops are exposed to rain and wind, while these 
are protected by the eaves. They often place 
beside the nest a platform of the clay, where 
the male bird can sit beside his little wife 



94 AUNT MAYS BIRD TALKS. 

while she is on the nest. Usually a number 
of swallows will build their nests on the same 
house, and the roofs look very queer orna- 
mented with these little cups. Their chirping 
is sweet and, though not so tuneful as the 
Thrush's note, it is bright and cheerful, and 
summer would not be complete without the 
Swallow. 

" These birds are what the Scotch people 
call ' clannish ', which means that all the mem- 
bers of the family like to stay together. Large 
flocks of swallows meet in one place, and 
people who have studied their habits say they 
choose a leader and he directs their journey 
southward in the fall. This is called migra- 
ting. Some students of Nature claim that the 
Swallow goes to sleep or hibernates instead of 
migrating, but this is not true. The Swallow 
migrates, as do all the feathered tribe, but she 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 95 



is faithful to her old home, and in the Spring 
goes back to her nest under the eaves of some 
old farm house or maybe to a city home. The 
people of Germany are very fond of the 
Swallow and think it a crime to kill one; they 
believe she brings them good luck, and if she 
does not return to her old nest in the Spring 
they fear their crops will fail. Some people 
claim that a home where Swallows build will 
never be struck by lightning. 

" One reason why these birds find favor with 
man is because they do not disturb his garden 
and fruits, as do so many birds. 

" Nature has given them the power to travel 
rapidly because they must earn their living by 
catching insects in the air, and so must be 
swift of wing and keen of sight in order to 
catch the little insects which are so quick 
in their movements. A Swallow has been 



AUNT MAYS BIRD TALKS. 97 

known to catch a thousand flies in one day. 
I think him a very greedy bird, don't you ? 
And then it is rather hard on the flies, too. 

" This bird is of a dark, grayish blue color, 
with a white throat and a very wide beak. 
The Perching birds are divided into four 
classes or tribes, according to the shape of 
their beaks. The name of the tribe to which 
the Swallow belongs means ' wide beak! The 
Thrush family and many of the singing birds 
belong to the second tribe, called Notched or 
Toothed Beak ; all birds of this tribe have a 
little notch on the beak. The third tribe has 
a Cone-shaped Beak ; your Canary belongs to 
this tribe, and that you may more easily dis- 
tinguish them I will tell you that all birds and 
fowls with cone-shaped beaks eat seed or grain. 
You know how much bird seed your pet 
Canary eats. 



98 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS 

"The last tribe of the Perching birds is that 
with the slender, long beak. To this family 
belongs the most delicate and fairy-like of 
birds, the Humming-bird. 

" Now that I have explained this difference 
between the various tribes of Perching birds, 
we will return to the Swallow r , and always 
remember that she belongs to the wide-beaked 
tribe, and this allows her to snatch her food 
from the air while on the wing. 

" The Swallow's eggs are white with reddish 
brown spots. The young birds soon learn to 
fly, and as they feel awkward at first, and have 
to give all their attention to their wings, their 
mother flies around them, catching gnats and 
flies, with which she feeds them, so that the 
family can take lunch while on the wing. 
They are very kind birds and often help each 
other to build their nests ; very different they 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 99 

are from the Rook, or naughty Blackbird, 
which will steal around and pull another bird's 
nest to pieces in order to find material for its 
own. 

" Swallows are said to foretell rain, because 
they fly low in cloudy weather; this is done in 
order to catch the insects which try to hide 
in the grasses and weeds when they feel a 
storm approaching. 

" I read a funny story the other day about 
a pair of swallows. They built their nest 
under a man's 
window, and he 
watched them 
with a great deal 
of interest ; the 
male brought damp clay in his beak, and 
his mate mixed it with straw, and so they 
made their nest. One day Mr. and Mrs. 




100 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

Swallow went out for a fly in the air — as 
we should go for a walk. When they came 
back, who should be sitting in their nest but 
two impudent little Sparrows ! The Swallows 
were much excited and tried in vain to drive 
their unwelcome visitors away ; the Sparrows, 
believing possession to be nine points of the 
law, declined to leave. After chattering to 
each other a few minutes, the Swallows flew 
away, and the man thought they had given 
up in despair. He was much surprised 
presently to see a crowd of Swallows com- 
ing from all sides, following the two whose 
home had been stolen from them. Each 
Swallow carried mud in his bill, which they 
dashed one at a time against the opening of 
the nest; this they continued to do until the 
opening was completely covered with mud, 
although the Sparrows tried to fight them off 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 101 

all the while. Finally the Swallows succeeded 
in plastering the nest all over with mud, and 
then built another right over it, where they 
raised their young in peace and safety ; in the 
Autumn the whole family, father, mother, and 

young birds, left with all the 
Swallow tribe for the south, 
but in the spring two Swal- 
lows came back to the nest 
again. These were recog- 
nized by the man who had 
watched them the year be- 
fore as the same birds he 
had seen fighting so hard 
to save their home. 
" The man, who was then a young student, 
was no other than the great Baron Cuvier, 
and this incident first awakened in him an 
interest in Natural History. 




102 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS, 

" There are several varieties of the Swallow 
family ; the largest of these is the Swift, which 
is larger than our Swallow and has enormous 
wings. The Martins are also of this family, 
and the Purple Martin, a very pretty variety, 
is abundant in the United States. 

" In far-away China, there is a small bird 
called the esculent Swallow. Away up in the 
rocks that hang over the sea it builds its nest 
of moss and seaweed. These nests the 
Chinese people make into jellies, soups or 
puddings, and think them a great delicacy. It 
is very dangerous to climb up the rocks in 
search of these nests, and they are so expen- 
sive that only the wealthy people can afford 
them. The Japanese seem always to have a 
way of getting ahead of the Chinese ; they 
found that these costly nests were made of 
a certain kind of seaweed gathered by the 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



103 




PURPLE MARTIN 



Swallow, so instead of paying such a big 
price for the nests, they gathered the seaweed 
— which is easily done — and can enjoy 'bird's 
nest soup' as often as they please, at a very 
low price. It is not certain, however, that the 
nests are really made of this seaweed. 

"Now, I think I have told you all I know 
about the Swallow, and we will go ask 
mamma for a watermelon, which I am sure 
you prefer to bird's nest pudding." 




Chapter IX 



THE LARK. 



11 Aunt May," said Lillian, as they sat in a 
semi-circle on the grass the next Saturday, 
munching apples and gazing lazily at the blue 
sky, " Mamma says I nust be ' up with the 
Lark ' every morning. I know that means a 
bird, but w 7 hy does she get up earlier than the 
others ? " 

" Shakespeare," said Aunt May, "and other 
great English poets have sung the praises of 
the Lark. She has been called the ' poor 
man's friend ', the ' harbinger of dawn ', and 



105 



106 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

many other poetic things have been said of 

her. All these compliments belong to the 

Sky-lark of England. She is not a pretty bird, 

for her color is a rusty brown with a little 

white on her breast, but her beautiful song 

makes her a favorite all over Europe. At the 

first faint crimson streak in the east which 

tells us that the sun has risen from his cloudy 

bed, she opens her bright little eyes, flutters 

her wings and soars away from her humble 

nest, thrilling earth and sky with her clear, 

happy notes. The poor workman lifts his 

sleepy eyes, listens, and says with a sigh, ' I 

must up and away, the Lark is singing and I 

know it is time for me to be at work/ And 

this is why we say of one who gets up early 

that he is ' up with the lark' or an ' early bird/ 

" So much for the Sky-lark. But their are 

many other varieties of the Lark family ; the 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. \0\ 

one most familiar to us is the Meadow Lark, 
although this bird is said to be not really a 
Lark at all, but related to the Red-winged 
Blackbirds and Starlings on one side and to 
the Orioles on the other. They are pretty, 
brown birds, streaked with darker brown and 
black, and having a yellowish breast. They 
are probably called Larks because of their 
sweet song, and Meadow-lark, because they 
are usually found in such places. The notes 
of the Meadow-lark are very sweet and pleas- 
ing, and, though he has not such a varied 
song as the Sky-lark of Europe, Wilson thinks 
that his few notes are sweeter and his 
plumage more rich. 

" All Larks build their nests on the ground 
instead of in trees or bushes like other birds ; 
this is because their claws are so made that 
they cannot perch on trees, but are formed 



108 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



more like feet for walking, except that the foot 
has a long toe at the back with a curved claw. 
These long hind toes may be seen on all birds 
that nest on the ground. The Lark's nest is 
sunk deep into the grass or often in the grow- 
ing corn ; it is made of grass, twigs and hair. 

The Lark is in 
great danger on 
account of the un- 
protected condition 
of her nest, but in 
spite of that she is 
so happy and free 
from care that as 'gay as a lark ' has become a 
proverb. 

" ' From this happy quality,' writes a French 
author, ' we claim her as the national bird of 
France ; she is the emblem of our nation, gay, 
light-hearted, careless and full of hope.' The 




AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 109 

people of Lapland, a far-away northern land, 
call the Lark the ' Bell-bird ', thinking her 
/oice like the deep rich tones of a bell. 

" Some country people in Europe think, if 
you want to know what the Lark sings, you 
must lie on your back in the field and watch 
her as she flies, w r hen you will hear her sing 
distinctly: 

" ' Up in the lift we go, 
Te hee, Te hee, Te hee ! 
There's not a shoemaker on earth can 

make a shoe for me ! 
Why so, w r hy so, why so ? 
Because my heel is as long as my toe/ 
"The Sky-lark's flight into the air is in the 
form of a spiral ; that is, instead of going 
straight up, she flies round and round, going 
a little higher each time, just like the ascent 
of a spiral staircase. As she goes up, her 




110 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

song swells stronger and stronger, and when 
she comes down it grows fainter and fainter ; 
this fact is also true of our Mocking-bird. 

The Meadow-lark 
and the Red-wing 
are very often 
seen nesting in 
the same meadow 
the former on the ground and the latter in a 
tree near by. 

" The female Lark is very cunning in the 
defence of her nest and her young ; it is said 
that if anyone approaches the former — which 
may be hidden from view in the grass — she 
will run into the path beside him, and as he 
comes nearer, she flutters along before him 
pretending to limp, thus causing her pursuer 
to believe her lame. Thinking she may be 
easily captured, he will naturally continue the 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. ill 



chase ; the male bird often joins her in this 
deception until the pursuer is led far away 
from the nest, when the Larks will suddenly 
fly up and out of sight, and return to their 
babies, who have been saved by this instinct 
of protection. 

" Larks belong to the tribe having a cone- 
shaped beak, a variety, you will remember, that 
subsist chiefly on grain ; they are very fond of 
nesting in or near a corn-field, and love to 
follow the farmers, often picking up stray grain 
that has been dropped. 

" All of the Lark family can be readily dis 
tinguished by their walk, which is a step, 
instead of a hop like that of most birds. 




DOWNY WOODPECKER 




Chapter X. 



THE WOODPECKER. 



u Do you hear that funny noise on the roof, 
Aunt May? " said John, swinging lazily to and 
fro in the hammock one very hot Saturday 
morning. " What is it ? " 

" Sounds to me like some one knocking at 

the door," said Daisy, dancing the kitten up 

and down for the amusement of her dolly. 
" More like a little drum," was Harrys 

opinion. 

113 



114 AUNT MAYS BIRD TALKS. 

" Listen ! " said Aunt May, " You are right, 
Harry, he is sometimes called the ' Drummer 
bird ~ ; he is our friend, the Woodpecker, and a 
very dignified gentleman he is, who always 
dresses in grand style and whose manners are 
courtly and grave. He has many high sound- 
ing names in the big books, but his common, 
everyday name is Woodpecker, because he 
makes his living in the way his name indi- 
cates. There are three hundred varieties in 
different countries, and his name and costume 
vary, but one thing he always wears, and that 
is a bright red cap perched on his head ; some- 
times the feathers on his body are green, 
sometimes spotted, again all black, or, as is 
more usual with us, black and white, but 
he always wears his little red cap, until we 
begin to think it must be the sign of his trade, 
as a white cap is worn by a miller. For the 



AtiNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



115 



Woodpecker, though a gentleman, is in trade. 
He is a carpenter and all day long his peck, 
peck, peck may be heard in the wood. He 
has a strange harsh cry which the people of 
the English provinces say is like a laugh ; for 
this reason they call him the Yaffle, or laugh- 
ing bird. This bird was certainly designed by 
Nature for his work ; his 
claws are strong and can 
clutch the bark of a tree 
so firmly that there is no 
danger of his slipping, as he 
might otherwise do, for his 
manner of climbing a tree is 
very peculiar. He does not 
walk straight up and down 
but sidewise, which gives 
him a very ridiculous appearance, as he goes 
slowly up with his head on one side looking 




iJ6 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

very wise ; his tail feathers are stiff, the center 
ones being longer than those on the end and 
by this means he steadies himself, using his 
tail as a prop. 

11 The Woodpecker makes his living by 
digging into the bark of a tree. Does he eat 
the bark, you say? No indeed! I will tell 
you what he does. As he goes up the tree he 
gives a tap, tap, tap, every step or two. A 
very wise carpenter is he, for he knows from 
the sound of the wood whether the tree is 
solid or decayed and full of holes inside. Now, 
I suppose you think our carpenter would 
, naturally prefer a nice fresh tree. Not so ! 
The Woodpecker knows his business. If the 
tree is sound he leaves it and continues his 
tap, tap, tap on other trees until he finds one 
which he knows to be rotten. These he 
strikes again and again with his firm, thick 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. II 7 

beak until he makes a hole in the bark and 
hundreds of ants ran out in every direction ; 
now this is just what our friend wants, for if 
there is anything he does love it is a nice, 
plump ant. This is how he makes his living, 
for if he did not go to the ant and consider 
her ways ( as the good book says ) she certainly 
would not come to him. Woodpeckers live 
chiefly on ants and other insects, so you see 
when he wants a good meal this little carpen- 
ter has to work for it. 

The Woodpecker never mislays his tools ; 
they are always where he wants them, for they 
are his little claws, beak and tongue. In 
addition to his claws for climbing, his tail for 
steadying and helping him to push his way 
along, and his beak for digging into the bark, 
his tongue is another very useful tool. You 
never saw such a queer tongue. It is a probe, 




YELLOW-BILLED WOODPECKER 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 119 

long and turned easily in any direction; and it 
is covered with sharp spines, or, as you would 
say, ' little stickers/ When he has dug into 
an old tree and the ants try to run away from 
the hole, the Woodpecker sticks his tongue 
deep into the hole, twists it around, gets it full 
of ants and their eggs and then pulls.it out; 
thus he can enjoy a good meal at his leisure, 
for the little spines prevent anything once on 
his tongue from getting off again. 

11 The noise the Woodpecker makes in boring 
can sometimes be heard for half a mile. This 
bird belongs, not to the order of Perching birds, 
as do all the others we have been talking about, 
but to the Climbing birds. 

" This dignified gentleman is said to be very 
foolish — like many people — when in love. 
His note at other times is but one tone re- 
peated over and over until it is very tiresome. 



120 AUNT MAY'S BIRD" TALKS. 

But when he decides that it is time to build 
a nest and have a little wife, he grows almost 
gay and lays aside much of his dignity. Then, 
indeed, may he be called the laughing bird, for, 
though he cannot really sing, he makes some 
noisy notes. When he visits his sweetheart, 
he walks up to her, bows his head, spreads his 
wings, and walks up and down sidewise, drag- 
ging his tail and putting on so many airs that 
I am sure you would laugh heartily if you 
could see him. Miss Woodpecker usually has 
plenty of suitors, so the favored one is very 
happy and thinks nothing too good for his 
little mate. They select a tree and at once 
begin work on their nest ; this is not like any 
of the other nests we have talked about, but 
is simply a deep hole in the tree. Both birds 
work hard and soon have a cosy little home; 
it is nicely finished inside, for our little car- 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



121 



penter has good taste, and if his home is 
humble it must still be neat and well finished. 
You may always know when this carpenter 
has been at work, for then he is surrounded 

by chips, like others of his 
craft. 

" The eggs, which are a 
beautiful clear white, are laid 
on a few chips in the bottom 
of the nest ; the little ones, 
unlike other birds, have no 
feathers until after they are 
fledged. 

" The Woodpecker is very 
industrious and saving in his disposition ; he 
will often work for amusement, making nests 
that he does not need rather than be idle. In 
the fall he will gather nuts and hollow out a 
number of small holes in the bark of the tree, 




122 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

fitting the nuts carefully into the holes, often 
putting dozens of them close together. It has 
been said that they store away only old rotten 
nuts, because they know these are full of 
worms and ants. Some of these birds eat 
nuts, berries and fruits, but usually they live 
on the insects that swarm in dead trees. 

" There is no bird of our American forests 
that can boast more beautiful plumage than 
the Woodpecker, and as there are three hun- 
dred varieties, the different combinations of 
color are very striking. On account of their 
coloring, Audubon called them the Vandykes. 
I wonder if you can tell me why they deserve 
this name. I want you to try to remember 
some peculiarity about each bird, by which 
you can remember them ; for instance, the 
Mocking-bird is called the basket maker; the 
Swallow, the mason ; the Oriole may be called 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



123 



the weaving or darning bird; the Wood- 
pecker, the carpenter, etc. 




CHICKADEE 



" Like the little Downy Woodpecker, the 
Chickadee is another of our faithful and hardy 
friends. On the coldest winter day you may 
hear his clear chickadee, dee, dee, day, day, day, 
on any street in town, where there are trees. 
In small flocks, the birds flit from tree to tree, 



124 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

from one old orchard to another. Often they 
cling head downward to the outer branches, 
looking closely into every bud and scale of the 
bare branches. What may they be looking 
for? Are not the insects all dead or in winter 
quarters ? That is true enough, but glued to 
the bud scales and the twigs are the very small 
eggs of all kinds of plant lice and the eggs of 
caterpillars and other insects. It is these tiny 
morsels of food that the Chickadees hunt for. 
It takes thousands of insect eggs to keep a 
Chickadee fed on a cold winter day, but he 
never tires, though he hunt for them all day 
long. 

"In order to know them you only need to 
listen and you will hear them call their own 
name. Besides the notes of chickadee-dee and 
day, day, day, the birds utter also a fine whistled 
tee-tee or dee-dee- The colors of the Chick- 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 125 

adee are as easy to learn as his voice. In 
winter and summer he wears a black cap. His 
throat is also black, while the cheeks and the 
lower parts are dull white. If you get close 
enough you may note a streak of brownish on 
his sides. If you now remember that the bird 
is smaller than a Sparrow and that he often 
hangs on to the twigs upside down you will 
be sure to know the Chickadee. 

NUTHATCH 

" Another interesting companion of the 
Woodpecker and Chickadee is the Nuthatch. 
It resembles the Woodpecker in the shape of its 
bill, but this little tree climber seems to be 
able to run down a tree as easily as other birds 
can run up a tree, 

11 The White-breasted Nuthatch, which is the 
most common with us, is about the size of a 



ik?m 



% 



5.- 






—■ 



WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH 



AUKT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 127 

sparrow, with a whitish breast, black cap and 
collar, and sky-blue back. 

11 His friend, the Red-breasted Nuthatch, is a 
little smaller, has black and white stripes on 
its head and a brownish-red breast. 

" You can see these busy little bodies at work 
more easily in winter time, when the leaves 
are off the trees, than in summer time. But, 
if ever you see a little bird running with a 
jerky motion up and down the trunk of a tree, 
or all around it, you may be sure it is a 
Nuthatch. 

" In the depth of winter when the trees are 
covered with ice, the Woodpeckers, Chicka- 
dees, and Nuthatches often visit our gardens 
and barnyards. They are said to be very fond 
of a piece of meat, suet or cracked nuts, and 
if you will fasten such food to the branches 
of a nearby tree in winter time, you may 




u 



< 



P 

2 



H 

< 

I 

Q 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 120 

enjoy a visit from these little friends of the 
wood, and hear the Nuthatch's auk, ank, or a 
chickadee-dee-day , ■ nen snow and ice are all 
around." 




THE LEAST FLYCATCHER 



FLY-CATCHERS. 

Fly-catchers are sober little birds, either 
wholly silent or singing a few sad little notes. 
They are dressed all in quaker drab and ash 
color, and have funny little " topknots " of 
bristling feathers which look for all the world 
as though the feathers had been bristled up so 
many times they could not be smoothed down 
again. 

Pewee is one of the few fly-catchers who 
sing, and a sweet, sad Little song it is, especially 
if you listen to it at sundown. Over and over 
again he calls — Pe-a-wee ? Pe-a-wee ? 

All our Fly-catchers are summer birds. 
The Pewee builds his nest on a mossy twig 

131 



132 AUNT MAYS BIRD TALKS. 

of a low bough and he and Madam Pewee 
decorate the outside of it with mosses and 
lichens till you can scarcely tell where the 
twig leaves off and the nest begins. 

The Least Fly-catcher is the tiniest of all the 
family ; the Great Crested is the largest. The 
Least Fly-catcher nests in the orchard or in 
some open field. 

This family is called the Fly-catcher family, 
not because these are the only birds which 
catch insects, but because of their peculiar 
way of catching flying insects. The King- 
bird — a Fly-catcher too — has the same family 
way of sitting very silently and without mov- 
ing a muscle till a fly or gnat, or moth, 
comes by, then — whish ! he is off his perch, 
seizes the insect in the air, swallows it and 
is in " position " again in less time than it 
takes to tell it. 




PHCEBE. 

The Phoebe is one of the Fly-catchers too, 
and flies at passing insects from a perch. At 
sundown you can often hear its sad call — 
P hoe-be, P hoe-be. It is known best by its nest, 
which is made of moss and mud and lined 
with grass and hairs. 

Phoebes like quiet and shady nesting places : 
often they build under a bridge, or down in an 
open well, or even in a building if it is unused. 

133 




YELLOW-THROATED VIREO 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 135 

They are about the size of a sparrow, 
dusky olive above and whitish below. 

The Phoebes like to build in the same spot 
year after year, and if they come back from 
the winter in the South to find their last year's 
nest untouched they will build very near it, 
leaving the old nest as a reminder of past joy 
and a promise of safety to come. 

VIREOS. 

The Kingbird, Crested Fly-catcher, Phoebe, 
Pewee, are Fly-catchers that watch from a 
perch for passing insects. They have a habit 
of raising their crown feathers, which makes 
them look quite bold. 

The modest Vireos, however, also catch in- 
sects, but they search for them among the 
leaves and branches of trees. 

Vireos, or Greenlets, as some people called 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



these little birds, are dressed for the most part 
in pale olive green and drab. They are small 
birds about the size of a sparrow, with big 
round voices and a "jerky" way of singing 
questions and answers- The Red-eyed Vireo's 
song seems to say: " You see it — you know 
it — do you hear me ? Do you believe it f " 

The more common are the Red-eyed, Yellow- 
throated and Warbling Vireos. 

Though birds of the woodland they are 
cheery and happy among the trees of our city 
gardens and parks, and may be heard from 
early summer until August. The Warbling 
Vireo's song is a continuous sweet warble, 
rather low in pitch, but being a shy bird, you 
must watch very carefully to see him. 







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RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD 




Chapter XL 
THE HUMMING-BIRD. 

11 O Aunt May ! come quickly, do hurry, we 
have the prettiest little thing you ever saw ! " 
gasped Marguerite, as she rushed into her 
teachers room one August morning. 

" Guess what it is," said another. " Come 
right into the conservatory," insisted all, " and 
see what the gardener has caught." 

Aunt May followed her impatient little ones, 
and soon found the cause of such great excite- 
ment. The gardener had caught in a fruit-jar 
a beautiful little Humming-bird which had 

139 




140 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

fluttered airily through the open window, 
attracted by the beautiful flowers. 

Aunt May took the jar 
and, handling it carefully, 
showed to each one the 
brilliant coloring of this 
little creature, the " Gem of Bird-land." 

"Tell us all about the Humming-bird, Aunt 
May," begged the children after they had 
admired the little beauty to their heart's con- 
tent, and had then set it free, watching, until it 
was lost to view, its lovely form and graceful, 
fluttering movements. 

" I have been reading in a Natural History 
to-day," said their story-teller, " a very interest- 
ing account of this dainty little creature and 
will try to tell you what I have read. In the 
first place, this bird, though of the order of 
Perching birds, does not belong to the same 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 141 

tribe of that order; the Humming-bird belongs 
to the tribe with long or attenuated beaks. 
The old saying that precious articles are put 
up in small packages, is certainly true of the 
Humming-bird. To the eye it represents all 
that is costly, resembling so vividly both 
precious gold and glittering gems of every 
hue ; as it fluttered away, did you not notice 
the beautiful bronze of its wings glistening 
and shimmering in the light? As it moved 
and different lights fell on it, the brilliant 
green of the emerald, the dazzling red of the 
ruby, glittering topaz and rarest violet hues 
met the eye. This specimen was of the 
Ruby-throated variety ; did you see the lovely 
red ruff he wore round his neck? It is as 
much more delicate than other birds as a fairy 
is more fragile than mortals. It is said to be 
' of all living creatures the most brilliantly 



142 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



beautiful in color and in airy grace ; its 
plumage is never soiled with dust, as it rarely 
lights on the ground. Dwelling in the air, it 
seems itself a flower of freshness and beauty ; 




it feeds on nectar from the flowers and stays 
only in climates where they may be found ; it 
follows the course of the sun, advancing or 
retiring with him, and thus lives in endless 
spring.' Thus writes a celebrated Naturalist, 
and no words of mine could so well describe 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 143 

this charming little creature to you. Audubon 
has compared it to the ' glittering fragment of 
a rainbow/ Early in May, as soon as the 
flowers have begun to bloom, the Humming- 
bird comes to gladden our eyes as other birds 
charm the ear ; there is an endless variety of 
them, the Ruby-throated being most familiar 
to us, and their feathers are so small that they 
look like scales. 

" The first thing we notice, after admiring 
his rich coloring, is the length of his beak and 
the size of his wings, which are shaped like 
a scythe, as are those of the Swift or large 
Swallow. The Humming-bird's wings are 
longer than the tail and very strong, enabling 
these tiny birds to sustain themselves in the 
air ; their bodies are frail and small, as are also 
their feet; this is because they have little use for 
feet, but need strength far more in their wings. 



144 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

" These dainty creatures do not alight on 
the ground, but balance themselves in the air 
by fanning it with their wings, which are large 
and strong, and can easily sustain the weight 
of their bodies off the ground ; the constant 
beating or fanning the air keeps them from 
falling, and thus they circle round and round a 
flower, sipping the honey from its cup, and 
then flit away to other sweets. It is this 
continual motion of the wings that makes the 
curious humming sound which gives them 
their name. 

" The Humming-bird, you know, obtains its 
food from the cups of long, tubular flowers 
principally, like the lily, trumpet-flower and 
others of the same kind, so they need the long, 
slender bill we have noticed which they can 
insert deep into the flower; in this way they 
not only draw the honey from the flower, but 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



145 



are able to feed on the insects which are 
usually found in it. 

" Their nests are dainty little structures only 
about an inch wide and deep ; they are usually 
fastened to the side of an old tree and are 
made of moss or some soft substance and 
lined with the petals of flowers or grasses. 
Think what a fairy bed it must be ! This is 
all matted together and glued with saliva from 
the bird's mouth, which makes it very firm 




146 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

and like a piece of felt or soft cloth ; for this 
reason these birds are called the felt makers. 

" They rarely lay more than two eggs which 
are white and very tiny. The little creatures 
are very brave and if another and larger bird 
approaches its nest, the male bird circles round 
and round with a humming sound and fre- 
quently strikes at the eyes of its enemy with 
its beak, for the latter is firm and sharp as a 
needle and makes a very good weapon. 

" You have noticed how your Canary feeds 
her babies ; she takes the food in her mouth, 
then puts her beak down their throats, and 
thus feeds them. The Humming-birds plan 
is just the opposite; when the parent bird has 
filled its mouth with sweets from the flowers, 
the little one's thrust their beaks down their 
parent's throats and suck the honey brought 
for them. They have tongues made of two 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 147 

muscular tubes joined, and broadening to the 
tip and ending in a little spoon-like joint. 
You know your kitty has little cups all over 
her tongue to hold the milk she laps, and the 
Humming-bird takes his food ' with a spoon.' 

" It is a rare pleasure to watch the move- 
ments of this delicate bird, flitting from flower 
to flower like a tiny fairy, with head on one 
side, bright eyes shining, and wings fanning 
the air. It seems, indeed, a child of air, too 
delicate and heavenly to belong to the earth it 
so rarely touches ; poised near a flower, never 
still, ever swaying and beating the air so 
swiftly that there is a continual but gentle 
murmur. Thus our little friend takes its 
dainty meal. First inserting its slender bill 
slowly into the flower to open it, then sticking 
in its long tongue which is covered with saliva, 
it draws away and quickly swallows every 



148 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

insect it can find, and then takes a cool drink 
of honey and dewdrops, while the stately lily 
nods its head gratefully, for she is quite will- 
ing to give a little honey to be rid of the 
insects. No wonder such a creature of light 
and air pines away and dies in confinement, 
and I am sure my little children prefer to see 
the Humming-bird flitting in its native element 
rather than wearing its brief life away in a 
cruel cage. 

11 ' The Humming-bird ! the Humming-bird ! 
So fairy-like and bright ; 
It lives among the sunny flowers, 
A creature of delight ! 

She builds her nest, the Humming-bird, 

Within an ancient wood, 
Her nest of silken cotton down, 

And rears her tiny brood. 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 149 

All crimson is her shining breast, 

Like to the red, red rose, 
Her neck, the changeful green and blue, 

That the neck of the peacock shows. 

Thou happy, happy Humming-bird, 
No winter round thee lowers, 

Thou never saw'st a leafless tree, 
Nor land without sweet flowers. 

A reign of summer joyfulness, 

To thee for life is given, 
Thy food, the honey in the flower, 

Thy drink, the dew from Heaven/' 






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GOLDFINCH 



GOLDFINCH. 

One day when the children were making 
daisy chains, a little bright yellow bird flew 
down in the grass not far from them, bent 
down a dandelion stem, and fell to eating the 
dandelion seeds as fast as he could gather 
them. 

" He is one of the dearest and prettiest of 
our birds as well as one of our best singers," 
said Aunt May. " He is the Goldfinch and 
sings a solo as nicely as your pet canary. Un- 
like most little birds which fly about in the 
open fields he is gay in color, but seen among 
the buttercups and daisies and dandelions in 
summer or among the goldenrods in autumn, 

151 



152 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

he is not easily noticed and many a hungry 
hawk passes him by without seeing him. 

In summer time the male Goldfinch is all 
yellow except his head and wings which are 
black with white spots on them, and, as Aunt 
May said, he looks very much like a bright 
little flower with wings. 

The female Goldfinch does not dress so 
showily. She could be seen too easily on her 
nest if she did ; so she wears a modest olive 
brown dress, without any shining yellow or 
white. 

In the winter time, when his bright color 
might attract attention from his enemies, the 
male Goldfinch also changes his dress and 
appears in brown, so that you could hardly tell 
him from the common sparrows. 

The Goldfinch's nest is a wonderful little 
downy cup, furred and felted inside with down 



AUNT MAYS BIRD TALKS. 153 

from dandelions, early everlasting flowers, and 
thistle heads, until it is soft as the softest 
velvet. 

You may see these pretty little birds mostly 
in late summer or autumn, for they put off 
their nest building until down for the lining 
of their nests and seeds for their food are 
plentiful. Many do not build until July, some 
in August, while others have been known to 
build as late as September. 
" Behold a bird's nest ! 

Mark it well, within, without ! 

No tool had he that wrought, no knife to cut, 

No nail to fix, no bodkin to inset, 

No glue to join ; his little beak was all ; 

And yet how neatly finished ! 

What nice hand, 

With every implement and means of art, 

Could compass such another? " 




SCARLET TANAGER 



SCARLET TANAGER. 

Another male bird noted for being much 
more showily dressed than his mate is the 
Scarlet Tanager. The whole body of the male 
bird is an intense scarlet red, s*et off with jet 
black wings and tail, while the mother bird is 
content with a soft olive green dress. 

It takes three years, however, for this bird 
to blossom out in all his fine feathers. For 
the first year he is dressed like Lady Tanagen 
in olive green. When he is two years old he 
appears with a part of his feathers red. In 
three years he is wholly clothed in scarlet. 
But he seems to take very little comfort with 
his finery because he is so easily seen by 

155 



156 AUNT MAY'S BlR ) TALKS. 

enemies. He dares not stay near his nest at 
this time. He hunts insects among the high- 
est and most leafy branches ; in August he 
takes off his red altogether and is dressed only 
in the greenish lining of his feathers. 

His nest may sometimes be seen on a 
horizontal limb of some oak or pine tree, but 
he does not show any skill as a basket maker, 
and seems satisfied with a loosely made nest 
of roots, fibres of wood, and coarse stems. 

He does not stay with us like the Goldfinch, 
but spends his winters far to the South. 




WINTER WREN IN THE WOOD,? 




Chapter XII. 



THE WREN. 



The day for the next bird talk was cold and 
rainy ; the children were glad enough to gather 
around the fireplace in the old library and 
amuse themselves by tying apples on strings 
which were fastened to the mantel-piece ; as 
the bright red balls slowly turned and pre- 
sented first one rosy cheek and then the other 
to the ardent flame, Aunt May began: 

" The Robin has been called the " Rainy day 
bird/' as he does not mind the weather, but 
works cheerily on wet, disagreeable days as 

159 



160 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

well as on fair ; but I think the same thing 
may be said with equal truth of his little 
bride, Jenny Wren, and since we have had a 
talk about the Robin — and they are both 
rainy day birds — what more appropriate than 
to turn to the Wren ? You all know her color, 
for when asked what kind of a wedding dress 
she should wear, she answered — according to 
Mother Goose, who knew more about it than 
any one else — 

" ' I will wear my russet gown, 
And never dress too fine/ 

11 Yes, she wears a sober brown dress with 
little dark stripes in it, but for all that she is 
gay and happy, and we know - from the good 
authority just quoted — that she was much 
beloved by other birds, for the Sparrow, Lark, 
Blackbird, Thrush, and a host of other singers 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



161 



vied with each other in singing her praises at 
the wedding and wishing her all manner of 
happiness. 




"' Happy be the bridegroom, 
Happy be the bride ! 
And may not man nor bird nor beast 
This happy pair divide ! ' " 

" The Wren is called a song bird, but with 
vis we hear, at best, but a twitter or chirp ; it 



X62 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

is a very small bird, as you may have noticed, 
and stays much on the ground, hopping rest- 
lessly about, and this quick manner is the 
same in all the different species of Wrens, of 
which there are one hundred and fifty in 
America alone. They often nest in hollow 
trees or stumps, but ours have their homes in 
the little trees right around the house, and do 
not seem at all timid, hopping to the door for 
crumbs, and hardly taking the trouble to fly 
away when we go near them ; they love to 
live near houses, and when a little box is put 
up for them to nest in, will return to it year 
after year, singing and chirping as they work 
or feed. They devour numbers of insects and 
also eat crumbs or little scraps of food. Yes- 
terday I saw one fly off with a piece of cake 
as large as itself ; it had hard work carrying 
such a burden, until one of its friends kindly 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 163 

came to the rescue — and ate the cake him- 
self. 

" As I said, there are countless varieties of 
these birds — the House Wren, the Winter 
and Carolina Wrens, the Marsh Wrens, etc. 
There are, according to Abbott, two varieties 
of the Marsh Wren — the long and the short 
billed ; one lays brownish and the other white 
eggs. These birds live in colonies and build 
large globe-shaped nests in the reeds, never 
leave home and take turns in singing; half the 
colony tuning up at one time and half at 
another. 

" There are many stories told of the Wren, 
which go to prove the belief that, though 
small, they have plenty of sense; one tradition 
is that once upon a time the birds of the forest 
met and decided to choose a king, but as each 
bird selected himself, they were as badly off as 



164 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

before ; finally the Eagle proposed that the bird 
should be made king that could fly the high- 
est, for he thought it would be an easy thing 
for him to win. And so it would, had not a 
tiny Wren outwitted him by hiding under the 
feathers on his back ; when the Eagle had 
reached a much greater height than any of the 
other birds and started down again, the Wren 
flew up even higher than he had been and 
came down to be hailed King by the other 
birds, while the Eagle sulked to think how he 
had been imposed upon. 

" Another story is that once an army had 
pitched their tents not far from the enemy's 
camp, expecting to fight a battle next day ; the 
enemy thought they would surprise them and 
come upon them while they were sleeping, 
take them prisoners and seize their weapons. 
Just as the soldiers were approaching, a Wren 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 165 

flew down and tapped with its bill three times 
on the drum. This awakened the sentinel, 
and he roused the whole army ; so they drove 
off their enemies, and ever after loved the wise 
little Wren. 

4k But you may often have noticed a pitched 
battle between the Wrens and the Sparrows, 
for the latter are great fighters and so greech 
that it is hard for little Jenny and her family 
to get enough to eat. Sparrows are said to 
be the only birds that prefer the city to the 
country, and no town is too smoky, no factory 
too noisy for them. They often build their 
nests in some such noisy 
place, and do not seem to mind 
the dirt and confusion. The 
English Sparrow is too well 
known to need description, as all our towns 
are full of them. This Sparrow is said to have 





ENGLISH SPARROW 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 167 

driven away our own Song Sparrow, which is 
a great pity, for his English cousin does not 
amount to much as a vocalist and is very 
troublesome. 

" Everybody knows that the English Sparrow 
is a small, stout, active and sometimes very 
noisy bird. As a rule, it is rather social, and 
likes the company of its fellows. 

" In dry weather, and when the Sparrow is 
making its little hops and jumps on the 
ground, or among the branches, it may be said 
to look its best. Its feathers are brown, and 
set close to its body, and we might almost call 
it handsome. It seems, however, to have 
rather untidy habits, and loves to roll in the 
sand or gravel in the road, or throw the street 
dirt all over its body. 

" But we must give some credit to the 
Sparrow for the care it takes of its young. 



168 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

The nest is soft and warm, and of a good size. 

The mother bird lays from four to six eggs, 

of a grayish white color, with spots of gray 

and black. When the young birds are hatched, 

the parents feed them all day long-- millions 

of insects such as caterpillars and flies, must 

go to supply the hungry little mouths. It is 

said to be especially fond of house-flies, and 

this is probably what makes the Sparrow, with 

all its faults, a constant dweller among the 

homes of man." 

Little warbler ! cheerful Wren ! 
Springtime's come and thou again : 
What of peace is to be found 
Circles all thy dwelling 'round ; 
Here with love beneath the shade 
Thy tranquil happiness is made. 
We often hear thy " chit-chat" song 
Call thy tiny brood along ; 
Thou makest thy home a place of rest, 
Of peace and love, and that is best. 



OWLS. 

11 But what birds can we study in the night, 
Aunt May?" said Marguerite one evening as 
they clambered over the orchard wall. 

Hark! — a queer wailing cry, somewhat 
like that of a little dog in distress. 

All the children ran to see what was the 
matter, but Aunt May only laughed. 

Just as they reached the big sweeting tree 
a little red and brown mottled Owl flew up on 
swift, noiseless wings. 

" An Owl ! " whispered Marguerite. H I never 
saw an Owl ! I do hope he will hoot ! " 

" That is the little Screech Owl," said Aunt 
May, " and the cry you heard was his. 

169 



i;0 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

" His nest is in the hollow trunk of the old 
sweeting tree, but you must not frighten Lady 
Owl. If we watch very quietly and patiently 
here in the moonlight, perhaps she will come 
out for exercise and supper." 

And Mr. and Mrs. Owl did come out, the 
pair flying low and swiftly over the fields, like 
noiseless sailing boats, chased beetles, and 
moths, capturing them with an odd little click 
of the bill which Marguerite said sounded like 
the snap of a tiny pistol. 

Once Mr. Owl darted at a mouse in the tall 
grass, chased it through the wall and alas 
lost sight of it under a pile of orchard brush. 

" But Mr. Owl is not so fierce on the hunt 
now as he will be when his babies come. 
Then woe to all the field mice, the moles, the 
rats, the moths, and the beetles that come to 
this orchard, " said Aunt May. " Those hungry 



AUNT MAYS BIRD TALKS. 171 

babies will need a great deal of such meat. 
Let us look in the nest, but we must be care- 
ful not to let the Owls see us." 

Down in the dark hollow in the tree 
trunk the children could just see the four 
white eggs in their bed of feathers and chips. 
But just then Mr. and Mrs. Owl came hurry- 
ing back and alighted so near, the children 
could see their markings and colors. They 
were reddish brown on the back, and whitish 
on the breast, mottled all over with dashes of 
dark and with little ear tufts which made their 
faces look very much like Kitty's. 

Later, when the children saw the fluffy 
babies, two of them were reddish and one was 
gray. Aunt May told them that these Owls 
often dress in these different colors ; no one 
knows why any more than they can under- 
stand why two of Pussy's kittens are white, 



172 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS 



and one is black and white, while another is 
black. 




The little Screech Owl has some big rela- 
tions. There is the Great Horned Owl, meas- 
uring twenty-two inches, a giant among our 
native owls. He has tufts of feathers striking 
out from each ear, from which he gets his 
name of Homed Owl. His call is a loud 
hoot, whoo, whoo, whoo, but is only heard at 
night time when he is searching for his prey. 




Chapter XIII 



THE BLUEBIRD 



' 



14 I have a treat for you, children," 
said Aunt May, " this is the last of our 
bird talks, and I am going to take you 
to the bird store to see all the lovely birds ; 
while there I will show you what I consider 
the prettiest and most lovable of the Thrush 
family, the Bluebird. Now run and dress 
quickly, and ask your mamma for dark dresses, 
for we do not want our jaunt spoiled by fear 
of hurting our clothes." 

Soon with simple gingham dresses and little 
shade hats, under which beamed happy faces, 

173 



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BLUEBIRD 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 175 

Aunt May's crowd assembled, and I do not 
think the Blackbirds over the creek could have 
made more noise chattering, than did this 
merry class. A delightful ride in the electric 
cars brought them to the famous bird store. 
Here Aunt May showed them many curious 
foreign birds and told of their strange habits; 
the Tailor-bird of India that sews leaves 
together and places its nest inside them, using 
its tiny beak as a needle ; the bottle-nest 
sparrow (also of India) whose nest is woven 
in the shape of a bottle and hangs upside 
down, suspended from a long branch ; but the 
most marvelous of these weavers is the social 
weaver (they all make their nest in the same 
manner as the Oriole). These social weavers 
first thatch a canopy of grass for all the colony 
and then each pair builds a nest under the 
eaves. 



176 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

Finally, when their curiosity had been satis- 
fied and they were just a little tired, Aunt 
May took them to a cool, shady spot in the 
Park where they could rest 
undisturbed, and this is 
what she told them about 
the Bluebird : 

"As early as February 
the Bluebird mav be seen 
in the middle states; he is 
always one of our earliest 
spring birds and has been called 
1 A poem of April 
That God endowed with wings.' 

" He is a member of the extensive Thrush 
family, but does not resemble his relatives 
very much, does he? They all wear very 
sober dresses, but he is gay and bright. How 
lovely the color of his feathers ! Like a bit of 




AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 177 

blue sky is his coat and his waist-coat is of 
pearl gray ; I think him quite a stylish little 
fellow, and he has such a lovely, friendly 
disposition, and such a clear, melodious voice, 
that it is no wonder we all admire him. One 
writer says he believes it is impossible for a 
Bluebird to commit an unkind act or utter a 
harsh note, but though sweet and amiable, he 
is full of courage and will wage deadly warfare 
against the snake, which is his most dreaded 

foe. 

" The Bluebird prefers for his nest ( which 

^^^ is made of twigs, grass, and 

^^ ^^■ > ||| hair) an old hollow stump 

^^W^^^'^r or a k°^ e * n a tree ! some- 
^^^^ times a farmer will put up 

^* a box for him to nest in and 

Mr. Bluebird pays his rent by killing and 

eating the spiders and insects which infest the 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 



gardens, and also by singing his sweet and 
cheerful song. Sometimes when our little 
friend goes home, after working hard all day, 
killing spiders and occasionally eating a berry 
or two, he finds a snake coiled up in his nest, 
and then what a terrible battle follows ! Our 
birdie gets his courage up and usually drives 
off the intruder. 

The male bird usually comes some time be- 
fore his little wife, who is not so 
gaily dressed, but well prepared for 
home work. She lays beautiful 
blue eggs to match her husbands 
feathers, which she admires very 
much, 

" Bluebirds, unlike the Sparrows, prefer a 
country life to one in a noisy city, but are 
social birds and love to be near a dwelling. 
It has been said (but I hesitate to believe such 




AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 179 

a report of this gentlemanly bird) that our 
blue friend will sometimes attack a nest full of 
Wrens or Sparrows, drive them off, and take 
the nest for its own ; but we have been warned 
to believe but half we see and nothing we 
hear, so we will forget this slander about the 
gentle Bluebird. These little warblers usually 
stay with us until November ; they do not like 
cold weather, and in the fall their song, which 
is a sweet, cheery warble in the sunny days, 
changes to a plaintive note as though they 
grieved, as we do, to sing ' Goodbye, Summer." 



x <*-<**<* 




Chapter XIV. 



" It does seem strange/' said Aunt May, on 
the last day of August, as they were taking a 
farewell ramble, " how the days of this summer 
have flown." 

" Well, Aunt May," said Marguerite, seri- 
ously, " maybe talking about so many birds 
made the days fly as fast as they do." 

" However that may be," answered their 
aunt laughingly, " our vacation is over and 

180 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 181 

school begins to-morrow ; soon one flock after 
another of our bird friends will leave us for 
the south, until we shall be quite lonely and 
feel thankful to our pet, the Bluebird, for 
remaining with us after the trees are leafless. 
The Robin, too, postpones his fall trip indefi- 
nitely and we love his cheerful whistle, and 
never think sweet the chatter, chatter, of the 
bird of society, as the Blackbird is sometimes 
called, because he likes company. I should 
love to tell you about many other interesting 
birds, but we must wait until next summer; 
the birds will wait for us, or rather, will come 
back. One of our most beautiful feathered 
friends is the brilliant Red-bird or Cardinal, as 
he" is called, because he wears a red cap like 
the great churchman. When you are a little 
older you can read ' A Kentucky Cardinal,' 
such a lovely story, telling about this pretty 




SNIPE 



AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 183 

bird ; then there is the Whip-poor-will, a 
regular talking bird, you would think, and one 
which lays its eggs right on the ground with 
only a few loose leaves for a nest; and again, 
the Cat-bird, the slyest member of the 
Thrush family, about which we had only 
time for a word or two ; and the Waders 
and Shore birds, which may always be known 
by their long legs, like the Heron and Snipe 
and the Swimming and Diving birds, which 
all have webbed feet, like the Ducks and 
Gulls — oh! we can find plenty of birds, 
never fear. 

" ' Do you ne'er think what wondrous beings 
these ? 
Whose household words are songs in many 

keys, 
Whose habitations in the tree-tops even 
Are half-way houses on the road to heaven ! ' 



184 AUNT MAY'S BIRD TALKS. 

" Now we must leave our little favorites and 
make ready for school work, but I hope by 
teaching my little pupils to love and admire 
the beauties of Nature, I may so lead them up 
to Nature's God. Then shall I feel that not 
in vain have been Aunt May's bird talks/' 



JUN 7 1909 



